The Backstory: Halle's father deserted her family when she was 4, leaving the sole job of parenting to her mother. As a teenager, she blossomed, winning the Miss Teen All-American Pageant, representing the state of Ohio, in 1985. Halle would go on to score the first runner-up slot at the Miss USA Pageant and win the evening-gown competition at the Miss World Pageant.

The Big Break: Early work on TV (Knots Landing, the short-lived supermodel series Living Dolls) led to the 1992 Eddie Murphy comeback comedy Boomerang. As Murphy's smart, beautiful and intelligent love interest, Halle won the hearts of pinup-starved boys.

Career High Points: More renown for her looks than her acting chops, Halle took a stab at thespian respectability in the 1999 HBO TV-movie, Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. The biopic about the pioneering (and doomed) black singer had long been toiling in Hollywood's development hell. Enter Berry, who championed the script, produced and starred in the flick. Her rewards: An Emmy, a Golden Globe, a SAG award and respectability. By 2001, her stature was such that she was able to extract an extra $500,000 from producers of the John Travolta action flick, Swordfish, for bearing her highly sought after breasts onscreen. In 2002 won an Academy Award for leading actress for her role in Monster's Ball.

Career Low Points: The Last Boy Scout (1991), The Flintstones (1994) and last and certainly least, B*A*P*S (1997). Personally, Halle endured a P.R. nightmare following a February 2000 two-car crash in which she was accused of leaving the scene of the crash. (She eventually pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge and paid $13,500 in fines.)

Famous Fling: Shemar Moore, soap-opera actor

Notable Quotable: "I spent a lot of time with a crown on my head." —Halle Berry, on her beauty-pageant days

Personal quotes

"...You have to find a way to be sad on every day, in every scene, in every moment. And always try to hide the sadness. And (then) you'll get the essence of who she was." - re: Dorothy Dandridge

"This moment is so much bigger than me, This moment is for Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll...It's for the women that stand beside me, Jada Pinkett, Angela Bassett, Vivica Fox...and it's for every nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance, because the door tonight has been opened."--During her Oscar acceptance speech.

"There's art and there's commerce. You have to find a way to mesh the two. It's important to do the little movies just for the love of the art. But it's those big movies that take you around the world and make you globally famous." (on choosing both serious and popcorn-movie roles)

"I'll never get married again, and I always hate to say never to anything, but I will never marry again."

I was black growing up in an all-white neighborhood so I felt like I just didn't fit in. Like I wasn't as good as everybody else or as smart, or whatever.

Blackness is a state of mind and I identify with the black community. Mainly, because I realized, early on, when I walk into a room, people see a black woman, they don't see a white women. So out of that reason alone, I identify more with the black community.

I spent a lot of time with a crown on my head.

The worst thing a man can ever do is kiss me on the first date.

I don't see a white woman. I see a black woman, even though my mother is white [her father Jerome is black]. Knowing that has made my life easier, I think.

Et Cetera: Named after the department store, Halle Brothers. She's a former high-school prom queen. She lost 80 percent of the hearing in her right ear from physically abusive boyfriend. She passed on the Sandra Bullock part in Speed. She fell into a diabetic coma during the taping of Living Dolls.

Another Story

One of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People [1998]

Miss USA; first runner-up to Christy Fichtner who was on the first season of "Who Wants to Marry My Dad?" (2003). [1986]

Miss Ohio USA [1986]

Miss Teen All American [1985]

Attended Cuyahoga Community College, Cleveland, Ohio.

Turned down the role of Annie in Speed (1994).

Is named after the grand old Halle Building in Cleveland, Ohio, which originally housed the Halle Brothers department store. The building is now an office building and the fictional setting for the Winfred-Louder department store on "The Drew Carey Show" (1995).

In high school, was an honor society member, editor of the school paper, and class president. Was also crowned prom queen.

Born at 9:03 p.m EST

Lost some hearing in one of her ears due to a physical encounter with a boyfriend in the early 90s.

Attended Heskett Middle School in Bedford, Ohio.

Is the second "Bond Girl" to win an Oscar. The first was Kim Basinger (Best Supporting Actress for L.A. Confidential (1997), 1997.)

First African American actress to win the Oscar for Best Actress.

Has a step-daughter named India

Sister Heidi b. 1964; is estranged from Halle.

April 10, 2002 - She received an injury on the set of Die Another Day (2002). Halle was injured on location in Cadiz, Spain while shooting an action sequence that involved Pierce Brosnan firing on a helicopter being flown by Rick Yune.

Portrayed Dorothy Dandridge in the made for television film Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999) (TV). Dorothy Dandridge was the first African-American woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress and coincidentally Halle Berry is the first to have won in that category.

Was named one of the 50 Most Beautiful People by People Magazine in 2002.

As a young aspiring actress Halle Berry was the leading lady in R. Kelly and Public Announcement's 1991 video hit Honey Love, where they re-enacted a scene from 9 1/2 Weeks.

Graduate of Bedford High School, Bedford, Ohio

First black American in the Miss World Competition. She didn't win a prize but her dress did.

She is the only official "Bond Girl" to win an Academy Award. Although Kim Basinger (Best Supporting Actress, L.A. Confidential (1997)) was a "Bond Girl", Never Say Never Again (1983) is not included in the list of 20 official James Bond films.

Her dress for the 2002 Oscars ceremony was voted the most popular from the first 75 years.

Ranked #96 in Premiere's 2003 annual Power 100 List.

Named one of the 50 most beautiful people in People Magazine in 2003. She has now appeared on this list seven times.

Voted the 10th Sexiest Female Movie Star in the Australian Empire Magazine September 2002.

Starred in three movies with Hugh Jackman: X-Men (2000); Swordfish (2001) and X2 (2003).

May 2003 - Broke her arm on the set of Gothika (2003), filming in Montreal.

Measurements: 36C-22-37 (Source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine)

Was a Bearcats cheerleader at Bedford High School.

Became engaged to singer 'Eric Benet' on 14 August 1999. Benet has a daughter, India (b. 1991)

Half British on her mother's side.

The first actress to star & portray two different comic book characters for two different comic book companies (Storm) for Marvel's X-Men (2000) & X2 (2003) & (Catwoman) for D.C Comics's Catwoman (2004).

She is currently the highest paid black actress in Hollywood. [2004]

Named one of the 50 most beautiful people in People Magazine in 2004. She has now appeared on this list eight times, tying with Julia Roberts for the most appearances.

Voted as #7 on the Top 100 Sexiest Women 2004 in FHM [DK]

Named one of the Top 10 authentic beauties in 2004. She was in the seventh rank in that list.

Played a character called "Sharon Stone" in The Flintstones (1994) - ten years later she appeared with the real Sharon Stone in Catwoman (2004).

Wisely turned down the female lead in box office disaster Gigli (2003) which birthed the relationship of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez.

Smashed her head into set lights on the set of Catwoman (2004). She wasn't seriously injured.

Adopted a cat (that was originally an extra for Catwoman (2004)) named Playto, to help herself learn about cats. However, she renamed the cat Playdough, because Playto was too serious a name for her.

Her first $1 million salary for a film was for Executive Decision - a part which she earlier refused.... until she was offered $1 million.

Voted #7 on VH1's 100 Hottest Hotties

Ranked #15 in Stuff magazine's "102 Sexiest Women in the World" (2002).

The age difference between herself and Rosamund Pike in 'Die Another Day' (2002) - 12 years and 5 months - is the greatest age difference between two Bond girls in one film since Alison Doody and Grace Jones - a difference of 18 years - in 'A View to a Kill' (1985).